The logo of the Bank of Beirut and the Arab Countries (BBAC). (Credit: Facebook)
BEIRUT — Anti-corruption collective Pioneers of Justice called Saturday for opening a judicial probe against Bank of Beirut and the Arab Countries, which it accuses of "identity theft" against some customers and "wastage of public funds."
In a statement, the collective claimed that BBAC "has taken advantage, illegally, of the Sayrafa [exchange rate] platform set up by the Banque Du Liban (BDL) ... by posing as customers and performing monetary operations in their name without their approval." The acts constitute "fraud, abuse of power, identity theft, money laundering and wastage of public funds," the Pioneers of Justice said.
The group also demanded that the banks that committed the alleged crimes, as well as their directors and board members, be prosecuted.
"These accusations have no basis," a BBAC representative told L'Orient-Le Jour on condition of anonymity. He added that the bank "regularly" tracks its Sayrafa exchanges and sends that information to BDL, "which regularly transfers to us funds that we will subsequently sell to customers." The bank "sends the central bank the details of these exchanges," he said, claiming BBAC buys "far fewer dollars via the Sayrafa platform than other banks."
People and companies can convert and withdraw dollars from their Lebanese lira bank accounts on a monthly basis at BDL's Sayrafa platform exchange rate, which was LL42,000 to the dollar on Saturday.
The parallel market rate, meanwhile, stood at around LL64,000 Saturday afternoon.
BDL officially reset the lira to LL15,000 earlier this week, a devaluation of 90 percent compared to the formerly longstanding LL1,500 exchange rate.
Since the beginning of Lebanon's financial and economic collapse in 2019, Pioneers of Justice has filed several legal complaints, including against BDL governor Riad Salameh and his brother Raja, whom they accuse of "illicit enrichment and money laundering."
In recent months, some customers angry at the illegal restrictions imposed by banks have staged armed and unarmed holdups in an attempt to withdraw some of their savings by force.